Executive Summary

• This week’s note “From the Desk of Deborah Weinswig” discusses the future of automated stores and includes highlights from the FGRT team’s recent visit to one of Alibaba’s Hema automated grocery stores in China.
• Some 30% of US desktop transactions are now preceded by a click on a mobile device, and advertisers see 68% of sales taking place on mobile devices, according to new data from Criteo.
• Amazon has partnered with British grocer Morrisons to enable customers to order groceries by voice command through the online retailer’s artificial intelligence–powered Echo and Tap devices.
• Amazon has denied reports that it is withdrawing its Amazon Web Services (AWS) business from China, but the firm did admit that it has been forced to sell some physical assets in order to comply with Chinese law.